Creature of the Night

It's a good thing I'm basically nocturnal.  

Throughout school (all 3 versions of post secondary) I was always a night owl.  Feeling a mattress beneath me and pulling a sheet up to my chin (summer or winter, it's always at chin height) rarely happened before 3am.  I was the one writing 10 page papers all night and walking into class to flop them on the desk of the unsuspecting professor.  Oh, they had no idea of the genius they were about to encounter.  Not just anyone could come up with brilliance like that in only 12 hours. And if my children are ever to read this, that of course means 12 hours spread out over 2 months spent scouring library shelves and archives.  And microfiche.

For work (yes, even in the dreaded retail portion of my working history I was out until half past ridiculous), for play (though let's be honest, I wasn't much of a playah), during pregnancies and now throughout motherhood...I'm up.  Always up.  Soothing ear aches, cleaning vomit out of carpets and beloved Boo Bears, cuddling after a bad dream, comforting Brayden as he cries because he thinks he's just fallen out of bed, when in fact he fell asleep on the floor in his sleeping bag and is just confused. 


Other mommies collapse into bed by 10pm.  I can't even fathom that.  Partly because my kids don't actually pass out until roughly 9:30 most nights.  That's when I can finally just sit and BE.  I generally come down the stairs (expertly avoiding the aforementioned cat hurdles and moving target that is otherwise known as the family dog), stare at the counter full of dishes for a few minutes, then promptly plop myself on the 7 year old Ikea couch that is completely in ruins, hidden under the sage couch cover.


Doesn't matter if I'm tired or wired, I'm just up.  Joining the other creatures of the night.  Hey, it worked for Sarah Michelle Gellar on Buffy right?  And I AM a monster slayer.  Just ask Madison, she'll tell you.  Monsters don't mess with Mommy.  Neither do the bad men, especially the one in the purple hat.


The problem I have you see, is that real life gets in the way of my nocturnalism.  O.k. that's not a word, but you pick up what I'm puttin' down.  I still have to get up in the morning, somehow get ready for work (some days also getting Madison ready for school, sometimes not...when Daddy's home, that's his job), get TO work (almost always 8 minutes late) and make it through the day without falling asleep at my desk.  Which I've never done.  Good thing I work in radio because my head bobbing generally goes to the beat of whatever "whatever" we're playing at the time.


Do I envy those who fall blissfully into REM before midnight?  HELLS NO!  I love the nightlife, I love to boogie.  I just wish I didn't have to be up in 5.5 hours.